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Master Brewers Series Spotlight: Evil Genius Beer Company

This past Thursday Luke Bowen, Cofounder and BrewMaster of Evil Genius Beer Company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, joined us to kick off the Master Brewer Series at Cheeky Monkey!

We talked with Bowen to get the inside tips and story of Evil Genius after enjoying a couple brews, of course. From his favorite beer to how it all started, we have all the details. See what he told us about how he started Evil Genius with his business partner Trevor Hayward.

After working in the corporate world for a few years, Bowen decided that it wasn’t for him. He always thought of opening a brewery, but wasn’t sure if he wanted to take the risk. At what Bowen described as a “serendipitous moment” he took the leap, quit his job at corporate America and “what many 20-somethings do when they have no idea what to do with their lives”, Bowen stated, he went to graduate school where he meet Hayward. There the two men both had a passion for beer and combined their knowledge of business to start their brewery.

Where did they come up with the name Evil Genius? The story is not as crazy as you would think! After hours of trying to come up with a name Bowen and Hayward enjoyed a couple of brews and began flipping through the channels, where they stopped on the cartoon Pinky and the Brain, where two lab rats were tested on by what the show called an “Evil Genius”. At this moment the two knew that this was the name of their brewery.

Along with naming their brewery, we also uncovered the reasoning behind their creative beer names and it’s simple. They’re funny names with no meaning. They figured if they had good beer then they should have a good name. All of their brew names are based off of pop culture trends and current motifs. They have a board in their offices where they write down possible names and even accept fan submissions.

Fun Fact about Luke Bowen his favorite Evil Genius beer is Purple Monkey Dishwasher and he says that it always will be. He created the brew which has been served 6 out of the 7 years of Evil Genius’s existence. Take it from us, it’s delicious.

Thank you to Luke Bowen and Evil Genius for joining for our first Master Brewers Series event. Join us Thursday, November 8th as we welcome Melvin Brewing and their Head Brewer David Chichura.